Medical and Hospital News
WEATHER REPORT
Tornado hits southern California as wild weather continues
Tornado hits southern California as wild weather continues
By Huw GRIFFITH
Los Angeles (AFP) March 22, 2023

A tornado tore through a southern California city Wednesday, ripping roofs off buildings and throwing cars around, as the state's ongoing winter weather drama turned even wilder.

A swirling mass of wind -- of the kind usually seen in the Midwest -- raked the city of Montebello near Los Angeles, breaking windows and sending residents scurrying to safety.

"I was driving... and I saw this tornado in front of me and had to reverse out," one local business owner told broadcaster KTLA.

"The tornado took off the roof of the building. All the windows of the cars are shattered. Cars were destroyed, it was just a mess."

Footage showed what appeared to be roofing material circling above industrial buildings in the city, which lies just a few miles (kilometers) from downtown Los Angeles.

Aerial pictures in the aftermath showed holes in several roofs, pipes and installations twisted and broken, and cars seemingly pushed out of their parking bays.

"I saw cars just swiveling through the streets and it was just the craziest thing I've ever seen," the business owner said.

The National Weather Service said it was investigating the event, which it called "a weak tornado," and another in Carpinteria, near Santa Barbara.

"A weak, narrow tornado briefly touched down in the Sandpiper Village mobile home park in Carpinteria on the evening of Tuesday, March 21," the NWS said.

"It damaged around 25 mobile home units and there was minor tree damage to the cemetery adjacent to the mobile home park."

Tornadoes -- violently rotating columns of air that touch the ground -- are nature's most violent storms, the NWS says.

They can pack winds of up to 300 miles (480 kilometers) an hour and can tear through a neighborhood in seconds.

Preliminary NWS estimates suggest these two events had winds up to 85 miles an hour.

Nevertheless, "this is a pretty significant tornado by (California) standards since it hit a populated area, clearly caused damage, and may have caused injuries," meteorologist Daniel Swain said on Twitter.

- 'Long haul' -

The tornadoes came at the tail end of an intense storm that ripped through California, downing trees and knocking out power to hundreds of thousands of people as it dumped heavy rain and snow.

Huge swathes of the state remain on flood watch, with a big tract of land in Tulare County under water.

More than 700 buildings have been damaged, said Carrie Monteiro, spokeswoman for Tulare County's Emergency Operations Center, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Utility companies will need to assess possible damage to water, waste and electrical systems before anyone can be given the green light for returning home.

"We're in for a long haul here in Tulare County," she said.

Over the last few months, the state has been hit by a dozen atmospheric rivers -- ribbons of moisture that chug in from the Pacific Ocean.

They have dumped trillions of gallons (liters) of water -- rain and snow -- on a part of the country that has been suffering from a decades-long historic drought.

Water managers say that while regional reservoirs are looking much healthier now than they have for several years, the situation could quickly reverse if next winter is as dry as the last one.

Scientists say human-caused climate change exacerbates extreme weather, making dry periods drier and wet times much wetter.

Related Links
Weather News at TerraDaily.com

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
WEATHER REPORT
Sorrow in Peru as mudslides destroy homes
Chaclacayo, Peru (AFP) March 16, 2023
One mudslide after another finally destroyed the house of Elvis Palomino in Chaclacayo, east of Peru's capital Lima, where others are stacking sandbags they hope will save them from a similar fate. As heavy rains continue to drench the region, they fear the rising waters of the Rimac - Quechua for "talking river" - could also turn them into casualties of the natural disasters that have claimed several dozen lives this year. "It took my entire house, left me with nothing," said Palomino, a 58-y ... read more

WEATHER REPORT
UN's global disaster alert systems goal faces uphill climb

Natural disasters, inflation upped insurers' costs in 2022: Swiss Re

Quake-hit Syrians brace for subdued Ramadan

Syria GDP to shrink another 2.3% due to earthquake: World Bank

WEATHER REPORT
Telit Cinterion adds Dual-Band GNSS Positioning to AIROHA AG3335 Chipsets

Monogoto teams with Skylo and SODAQ to deliver NB-IoT satellite asset tracking

Quectel announces CC200A-LB satellite module for IoT

Topcon further expands MC-X Platform with all-new GNSS Option

WEATHER REPORT
Japanese immigrant's legacy paints Mexico City violet

Vast cemetery in Iraq echoes 14 centuries of life and death

In Old Cairo, residents reconnect with their heritage

Back to the time of the first Homo Sapiens with a futuristic clock, the new Radiocarbon 3.0

WEATHER REPORT
Biden protects two giant US wilderness areas

Vietnam seizes seven tonnes of ivory from Angola

Their time to slime: who will be 'Mollusc of the Year'?

UK trophy hunting bill irks African conservationists

WEATHER REPORT
WHO warns Cyclone Freddy raising 'major' health risks

China approves first domestic mRNA vaccine for Covid-19

Malawi says cholera crisis risks worsening after Cyclone Freddy

Doctor who exposed China's 2003 SARS cover-up dies at 91

WEATHER REPORT
Blinken seeks US funds for UN culture agency to counter China

Brazil's Lula, ill with pneumonia, postpones China trip

Hong Kong asylum seekers fear deportation under tightened policy

US arrests Chinese tycoon who backed Trump advisor Bannon

WEATHER REPORT
People smugglers use TikTok to promote their services

Colombia's Petro accuses Gulf Clan cartel of breaking ceasefire

Ecuadoran soldier killed in clash with drug traffickers

US designates Russia's Wagner military group an intl 'criminal organization'

WEATHER REPORT
Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.